Sonic Gets More Comic Book Love

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Archie Comics continues to deliver the blue hedgehog goodness.

By Joey Esposito

The legacy of the beloved blue hedgehog continues strong at Archie Comics, with multiple successful series ongoing from the publisher as well as a diverse collection of magazines, trade paperbacks, and graphic novels.

To get the scoop on the recently announced Sonic Legacy Volume 2 and the Sonic Saga series, which collects Ian Flynn's long run on the character, we had a quick chat with Sonic editor Paul Kaminski.

IGN Comics: Paul, how would you summarize the editorial idea behind Sonic Saga? Why should fans pick it up?

Paul Kaminski: Since 2006, around when we pick up with "Saga", the Sonic the Hedgehog stories began taking on an awesome epic quality thanks in large part to writer Ian Flynn and the direction of then-editor (now-President) Mike Pellerito. The Sonic Saga series showcases all that goodness that newer Sonic fans will be experiencing for the first time!

To put it into context with our other graphic novel lines, the Sonic Saga series is a modern version of the Sonic Archives collection, akin to the Sonic Universe graphic novel series in which we chronologically collect the current story arcs.

IGN: And what exactly is included in the new Sonic Legacy collection?

Kaminski: Sonic Legacy Series Vol. 2 picks up right where Volume 1 left off, collecting Sonic the Hedgehog #17-36. Combined with special features, that puts "Legacy" at a whopping 512 pages! When we launched Sonic Legacy Vol. 1 last fall, we knew it was a unique product that would stand out amongst the other Sonic graphic novels. What I couldn't have told you at the time was just how much the fan base would embrace "Legacy", making it one of our top Sonic GN titles of the past year!

IGN: Is there any material on Volume 2 that's hard-to-find or never-been-seen before?

Kaminski: Legacy Vol. 2 has about 11 pages of never-before-seen special features and series production art. It's so much fun to go though the old files from back in the day to find some of these gems -- we're talking SPAZ art, script stuff, satAM art... the works!

IGN: What has Ian Flynn done for the Sonic brand at Archie?

Kaminski: Ian brings the most important thing that any writer can bring to a comic book series -- he brings a sense of fun. He also really gets into the heads of the character he's writing and "humanizes" them in a way that's believable and relatable, even though we're dealing with anthropomorphic characters on the planet Mobius. I'm a big fan of what he does not only on Sonic, but on Mega Man and (our upcoming super hero title) New Crusaders as well.

IGN: How would you explain the various Sonic graphic novel lines to a newbie?

Kaminski: Sonic and Knuckles Archives are bite-sized, old-school Sonic awesomeness. Sonic Legacy is king-sized old-school Sonic awesomeness. Sonic Universe and Sonic Saga Series are the cutting-edge Sonic awesomeness. Best of Sonic is the greatest hits, Sonic Genesis is the greatest hit, and the Sonic Comic Encyclopedia is your own personal Sonic-pedia!

IGN: Are there other creator-specific collections you'll be rolling out, whether with Sonic or another Archie property?

Kaminski: We're really excited about the launch of Sonic Comic Encyclopedia, slated for release this October. That's going to be the definitive guide to Sonic and his world, as chronicled by Ian Flynn accompanied by all-new art by the Sonic Comic A-list!

Joey is IGN's Comics Editor and a comic book creator himself. Follow Joey on Twitter, or find him on My IGN. You may or may not discover a profound number of cat pictures.